The present invention relates generally to the field of engraving. More particularly, the invention relates to a system and method for positioning a workpiece to be engraved in an engraving apparatus.
A problem in the field of engraving is the lack of skilled engravers available to perform engraving operations. This is particularly apparent in jewelry and variety stores, where customers often desire to purchase personally engraved items. To engrave an item with the currently available engraving equipment, the stores must have an employee available who is skilled in the art of engraving, including positioning the item for engraving and performing the actual engraving.
Positioning the item for engraving requires skill to ensure that the workpiece is aligned correctly under the engraver and that the workpiece is firmly clamped into place so that the workpiece will not move while it is being engraved. If the workpiece shifts during the engraving operation, the workpiece will likely be ruined and the operator would be forced to start over with a new workpiece. The experience required to gain workpiece positioning skill was typically learned by trial and error. Thus, experienced people are hard to find, and training new people is time-consuming and expensive.
There are vending machines that can automatically position and engrave a selected workpiece. Such vending machines require no engraving experience to operate. However, these machines have a large footprint, taking up much floor space and making them impractical to operate in small jewelry and variety stores. An engraving machine that is inexpensive to manufacture, easy to operate, and compact enough to fit on a table top would best fit the needs of the smaller stores.
In light of the foregoing, there is a need for an engraving system that reduces the skill needed by an operator to engrave a workpiece and that is compact in size.